The easiest, quickest way to communicate is simply to say something
and then deal with the other person's reply, right? Except that if
your listener has a CAPD (Central Auditory Processing Disorder) your
remark might come through with certain words drowned out by other
noises, or with some words sounding like different words or as
meaningless strings of verbiage. You might begin to suspect this when
the other person's expression doesn't register understanding, or if he
"answers the wrong question," or when he asks you for additional
information which most people would have been able to infer from what
you just said.

Most of us aren't that sophisticated about CAPDs, however, and are
much more likely to wonder if the listener is just not very
intelligent or doesn't really care about us and what we are saying.
People with CAPDs (which are usually part of a learning disability)
have been embarrassed by situations and reactions like these all their
lives.

A CAPD is a physical hearing impairment, but one which does not show
up as a hearing loss on routine screenings or an audiogram. Instead,
it affects the hearing system beyond the ear, whose job it is to
separate a meaningful message from non-essential background sound and
deliver that information with good clarity to the intellectual centers
of the brain (the central nervous system). When we receive distorted
or incomplete auditory messages we lose one of our most vital links
with the world and other people.

These "short circuits in the wiring" sometimes run in families or
result from a difficult birth, just like any learning disability (LD).
In some cases the disorder is acquired from a head injury or severe
illness. Often the exact cause is not known.
Children and adults whose auditory problems have not been recognized
and dealt with are forced to invent their own solutions. The resulting
behaviors can mask the real problem and complicate not only school and
work, but even close relationships, where communication is so
important. Advice like "Pay attention," "Listen," or "Don't forget
--," hasn't helped either.

It takes specialized testing to identify a CAPD. Some of the tests
used by educational therapists, neuropsychologists, and educational
psychologists give at least an indication that a CAPD might be
present. These include tests of auditory memory (for sentences,
nonsense syllables, or numbers backward), sequencing, tonal pattern
recognition or sound blending, and store of general information (which
is most often acquired through listening). The most accurate way to
sort out CAPDs from other problems that mimic them, however, is
through clinical audiologic tests of central nervous system function.
These are better at locating the site of the problem and reducing the
effects of language sophistication on the test results.
Do your best to choose a professional who is familiar with CAPDs, is
comfortable working with adults, and who can write a useful and
understandable report. You might ask: "How many adults with auditory
processing disorders do you work with in a year?" or, "What kind of a
report would you write to help me or my employer understand my
problem?" Nowadays there are many ways professionals can help you
streamline your coping abilities. Also, there may be conditions
accompanying the CAPD which are medically treatable like allergies,
Attention Deficit Disorder, Tourette syndrome, or nutritional
deficiencies.

This checklist of common features of CAPD might lead you to consider
such a possibility for yourself, a co-worker, or a friend or relative,
if several items apply:

CAPD is a physical disorder under the protection of the ADA
(Americans with Disabilities Act). But put yourself in the other
person's place: how can your supervisor or co-worker possibly know
whether you made a mistake because of impaired hearing, lack of
interest, or stupidity? You need to know how to identify the problem
so that you can explain it to others and ask for what you need. If you
grew up at a time or place where your CAPD wasn't recognized you might
need a knowledgeable professional to give you some insight into this.
But if you listen to your feelings rather than trying to talk yourself
out of them, you can generally get a good sense of the help you would
like. Thus, if noisy people and places "bug" you, or if your most
satisfying school memories were of projects you built or field trips
you went on, you don't need anyone to tell you you'd work best in a
quiet place, or that you're a hands-on or experiential learner.

So what do you tell them at work to keep this from becoming another
one of those jobs where you quit before they can fire you? Here are
some ideas. Do you:

1) Have trouble hearing clearly when it's noisy? This can be a failure
of one or more of the automatic noise-suppression systems of the
brain. It is reasonable to ask for a desk away from the computers or
for a sound-absorbant partition. It is both polite and efficient to
say, "I'm interested in what you're saying. Let's move away from this
noise." A mild-gain amplifier can help you hear accurately on the
phone over the noise of a busy office.

2) Sometimes make "silly" mistakes or "careless" errors? Intrusions
of random sounds which normal-hearing people can ignore may break your
concentration so that you lose your place and skip a task (like
carrying a number or writing a small word in the sentence). Take the
work to a quieter place if necessary. Earplugs (sometimes in only one
ear which suppresses noise less well) are a possible emergency
solution. Make a deal with someone else to proofread your work.

3) Miss important sounds or signals that others hear easily?
Poor noise suppression and sound localization skills can cause important voices or signals to "disappear" in the general background. It will save others time if they know to tap you on the shoulder
before they launch into their conversation. Telephone bells and alarms
can be adjusted for volume or pitch, or a visual or tactile signal can
be added.

4) Get important messages wrong? Sound distortion, sequencing, auditory-visual transfer, and/or short term memory problems may be contributors. You can ask for the information in writing, double-check later with someone else who was present, or let the speaker know that she's going too fast. Even normal listeners often say, "Let me read
that back -- ," or "That's '3489'?"

5) Forget instructions? Inefficient short term auditory and
rote memory (or habituation) may figure in this. Get in the habit of
taking notes; set up a logbook for longer-term assignments; ask that
the information be put in a memo. You might even carry a small tape
recorder or dictaphone in some situations. If you often forget to go
back to it later, put the memo or recorder where you must see it, as
by your purse or underneath something you use every day.

concept formation and memory, or failure to consider alternative word
definitions so that meaning is mis-perceived. You can "freeze" it for
later analysis by writing or taping. You can say "I learn better if I
do it myself while you watch." Have someone else help you fill in
details later.

7) Have difficulty knowing "what to say when" and are puzzled
by others' reactions to you? One possibility is an inefficiency in the
part of the brain which registers tonality (expression in the voice)
and gives us "quick fix" on the situation (sometimes referred to with
rough accuracy as a "right hemisphere disorder"). A professional can
help you learn other cues by which to "read" how people are feeling
about what you said and how to change what you say accordingly, much
as anyone would have to learn about a foreign culture. In the meantime
you might explain the problem to people you trust so their feelings
aren't hurt.

If you inherited parts of your CAPD/LD from your parents, as is often
the case, you need to remember that they grew up when far less was
known about these conditions than the little which may have been know
when you were young. They may have raised you with some of the harmful
"scripts" that were part of the parenting they received in a
generation where professionals and parents knew nothing about CAPDs.
Chances are your teachers or other professionals you grew up with were
not well-informed, either. Thus you might have been told "You'd do
fine if you just tried," or "You'll never amount to anything," or
worse. If so, try to remember that those things were not true or
helpful, but just what comes of lack of good information. Work to rid
yourself of those inaccurate parts of your self-image, and forgive
your parents and others for their lack of knowledge. Above all,
resolve not to pass on their "bad advice" to your own children or to
let it spoil relationships with other people you care about.
Remember that for you to have arrived at the point where you are
educated and employable, you must have many talents and strengths. You
may have superb visual memory, or be a gifted problem-solver or
mechanic, or be loved for your way with people, or be wonderfully
creative. Some of your skills may have been under-valued in an
academic setting, but now they can be worth money! These strengths
will be there to help you through the rough spots so work to identify
them, either on your own or with the help of a good professional.

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